


Baby Please Come Home

by Andithiel



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Christmas Time, Curse Breaker James Sirius Potter, Established Relationship, Happy Ending, Inspired by Music, Light Angst, Long-Distance Relationship, M/M, Misunderstandings, Poetic lemon, Reminiscing, Unspeakable Teddy Lupin, building a snowman
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-12
Updated: 2019-12-12
Packaged: 2021-02-18 04:08:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,349
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21771487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Andithiel/pseuds/Andithiel
Summary: It’s Christmas time, but Teddy is wandering the streets of Muggle London, feeling miserable and alone. He wishes James were here, instead of on a high-risk Curse-Breaking mission that won’t let him come home to celebrate with his loved ones.
Relationships: Teddy Lupin/James Sirius Potter
Comments: 14
Kudos: 103
Collections: Wireless Festive Minifest 2019





	Baby Please Come Home

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Wireless Mini Fest 2019. Inspired by [Christmas (Baby please come home)](https://youtu.be/UV8x7H3DD8Y) with Darlene Love.
> 
> My endless love to my two amazing friends [Etalice](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Etalice/pseuds/Etalice) and [Scarshavestories](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scarshavestories/pseuds/Scarshavestories) for helping me beta this at the last minute. I love you both so much!

“Hey! Watch where you’re going!”

Startled, Teddy managed to quickly jump to the side, barely avoiding a collision with a burly man sporting a thick walrus moustache. The man glared at him, but flinched when he saw the blue hair sticking out from under Teddy’s knitted hat, muttering something about _youngsters these days_ , and _back in my day we knew how to look prim and proper._

As Teddy watched him ambling away, he frowned. He should know better than to be out at this time of day at this time of year, but lately, he’d got into the habit of walking the streets of Muggle London. It was a distraction from the cold emptiness of his home, and somehow it soothed him, watching all the people rushing here and there, their arms laden with gifts and bags. The amount of them was increasing day by day, and now, two days before Christmas, they were everywhere, bumping into him left, right and centre as he tried to navigate through the mass. Somehow it was fitting that the streets had become crazier, he felt like it matched his inner turmoil.

He passed Shoreditch church, pausing by the metal fence, just as the bells started chiming. Normally he found the sound joyous and comforting; it reminded him of going to Midnight Mass with his Grandma as a child, but now they rang empty and hollow. 

Fuck, he missed James.

Christmas time was always hard for him, it made him miss his parents more than usual, and if it weren’t for Harry, he probably would’ve stayed alone, feeling miserable all through the festive period after his Grandma started celebrating Christmas with her sister in France. But Harry and his family had always made him feel welcome, made him feel at home, like he belonged.

He sighed, watching the trees lining the streets, with pretty lights strung all over them, when something cold and wet fell on his nose. He looked up and saw chunky snowflakes filling the air, making the sky look very Christmassy. Of course, it was too warm for it to stay on the ground, instead it melted into a brown slush, unlike last year, when he and James got together, and it had been unusually cold.

Teddy had known for a long time that James had a crush on him. Really, it was hard not to notice, what with James’ non existing brain-to-mouth filter that meant he expressed every feeling and every thought he had all the time. But Teddy had never considered it an option. Sure, James was fit, and sure, he was funny and charming, but they were best mates, and Teddy didn’t want to get with James simply because he was flattered that someone like James could fancy someone like him. He didn’t want to jeopardise their friendship, and he wasn’t sure he would be able to deal with the awkwardness if they were ever to break up. 

But then one night, a little more than a year ago, they had tumbled out of a club to find that it had started to snow. The snowflakes had been all around, floating, almost suspended in mid-air, and the ground had been covered in a layer of fluffy snow... 

They both stopped, turned their faces up, and James stuck his tongue out with a joyous laugh, the kind that came deep from his belly and sounded like it filled his entire body. It reminded Teddy of being at the Potters’ as a kid, feeling warm and happy, and something began to stir inside him. But he didn’t have time to elaborate on that, because James grabbed his hand and dragged him to a nearby park that was normally full of grass.

“Let’s make a snowman!” he shouted, his eyes shining with glee, and Teddy couldn’t say no even if he wanted to.

They spent the next hour rolling bigger and bigger balls of snow, piling them on top of each other. They decided they could probably get away with conjuring a hat and scarf if Teddy covered James while he did it. Then James took a long time modelling the face, while Teddy surreptitiously summoned pebbles to use as buttons. When Teddy looked up, James was standing beside the snowman, leaning against it with his arm slung around its neck, looking as if he was talking to a dear old friend. Teddy had to laugh.

“You look utterly ridiculous, d’you know that?”

James straightened up, rolling his shoulders and flashing Teddy a bright grin.

“So it works, then!”

“Yeah, well, that _is_ your default mode.”

James made a noise of faux indignation and shifted the snowman’s hat so it was sitting a little lopsided. “What do you think?”

Teddy stood up, brushing the snow off his trousers, looking at the face of their creation. 

“Did you make it into Albus?!”

James laughed so hard he was almost toppling over.

“He’d hate it if he saw it! Isn’t it great?!”

Teddy shook his head, chuckling, and went to attach the pebbles. James was watching him intently as he did, and for some reason, it made him feel hot all over. He felt scrutinised by James’ gaze, which was odd because he never usually felt that way around him. He took extra care placing the makeshift buttons, and when he finally looked up, he almost forgot how to breathe. James was standing incredibly close, with flushed cheeks and snowflakes caught in his unruly hair and eyelashes. He was so stunningly beautiful, and Teddy realised that somehow, at some point, without him noticing it, he’d gone and fallen in love with James. Because the mere thought that someone else would get to share this kind of moment with James, make him laugh like this, see him unguarded like this, made Teddy want to scream and punch something.

Perhaps James saw something had changed, because there was the tiniest shift in his facial expression, as if he was preparing for the kiss that Teddy now felt in his entire body was inevitable. Teddy slid his glove off and lifted his hand to James’ cheek, brushing away a few snowflakes, and leaned in. James’ hazel eyes were so clear, so open, as if he’d been waiting for this moment for a long time, and Teddy couldn’t remember why he’d thought the two of them together would be a bad idea. It was the best idea ever, it made so much sense. He closed his eyes, and the most delicious little sound escaped James’ throat, before their lips finally met, softly, slowly, James’ mouth hot against his, and Teddy thought he might die from the overwhelming sensation of kissing James, even this innocently. But soon, James opened his mouth to deepen the kiss, pulling Teddy closer, and Teddy knew, without a doubt, that he was completely gone.

They arrived home to Teddy’s flat in a frenzy, kissing and stumbling on their way to the bedroom, their clothes being discarded on the way. James’ body was like a furnace, and Teddy felt like he would be set on fire, but he didn’t care. He wanted to burn if it meant he could touch James like this. It was strange how he had never thought of them being together as an option, and now he felt like every second of not touching James was a wasted second.

He’d never seen anything so breathtaking as James, moaning and writhing underneath him, whispering encouragement and begging Teddy to go faster, harder, deeper, yes there, _there_ , and it didn’t take either of them long to reach their climax. Afterwards, Teddy collapsed over James, laughing against his neck, and after only a few minutes, James slid a hand into his hair, kissing him deeply and whispering “again”, with such reverence in his voice that Teddy’s body forgot that it actually needed some time before he could go again.

It took them three days to emerge from their bubble of laughing and fucking and lying tangled together in Teddy’s bed, only stopping to get some take away from the Indian place around the corner. Teddy took great pleasure in finding all the spots that turned James into a mess of desire, and it was only when he got an owl from his boss, wondering where the hell he was, that he realised it was Monday and they were supposed to go to work.

They decided to wait for a bit before they told James’ family, as they both agreed they wanted some peace and quiet first and some time to let it all settle. But of course, it only took Albus one look at Teddy when he arrived at the Potter house on Christmas morning to figure it out.

“Dad!” he shouted. “Dad! You owe me ten Galleons!”

Harry came skidding into the hallway, a spatula in his hand and his glasses stained with gravy. “Really?!” he said, sounding like an eager child, and he beamed at James and Teddy.

Teddy felt heat creep up his neck, but James only laughed. “What gave it away?”

Albus looked at Teddy with a smile that was a mix of smug and fond. “Oh please, Teddy practically lit up like Christmas tree as soon as he caught sight of you,” he told James.

And that was all it took, no one was upset or even surprised, and for the rest of Christmas, James was wrapped around Teddy on the couch, trying to make him as embarrassed as possible by constantly dropping sexual innuendos and groping Teddy in very obvious and inappropriate ways.

But this year, Christmas would be entirely shitty, Teddy thought as he shoved his hands deep into his pockets, deciding he had done enough aimless wandering for one night and that he ought to go home. He passed a group of carollers singing Deck the Halls, but they only reminded him of James drunkenly shout-singing it at the top of his lungs before Lily cast a lip-locking jinx on him. Teddy missed him so damn much, and the only thing he wished for right now was to be with him, saying Happy Christmas and snuggling in front of the fireplace. But he would be lucky if James ever wanted to speak to him ever again, now that he had so royally fucked up.

The worst thing was that Teddy hadn’t meant for it to sound like that. He’d only meant to express how much he missed James, how much he wanted him to come home again. But instead of saying that, he’d blurted “I can’t keep doing this”, making James so upset that he disconnected their international Floo call, and when Teddy had finally managed to get through the complicated process of reconnecting, James was gone. Panicking, Teddy had rushed out and sprinted to the Owl Post Office to send James a letter, even if he knew it would take several days for it to reach him.

When James had told him, four months into their relationship, that he’d got an internship as a Curse-Breaker in Mongolia, Teddy had been thrilled for him. He knew most people only saw James as an athletic, carefree and childish knob, but they had no idea how intelligent James was or how much he enjoyed solving really complicated problems. And so when James, with a trembling voice and a worried crease between his eyes, had asked Teddy if he thought it would be okay for him to be so far away for two years, he’d smiled and kissed James, telling him that they would be fine, and he would wait for as long as it took, as long as it made James happy. 

In the beginning, it had been fine. They’d written to each other every day, and Teddy, in his role as an Unspeakable, had even managed to visit James on site for a few days. But soon the work had intensified for James, making him write less and less, with shorter and shorter messages, and finally, two days ago, Teddy got a letter saying that James had been called in on a special high-risk mission that made it impossible for him to come home for Christmas.

Everyone in the Potter family was disappointed by this news, of course, but for Teddy, it was like a blow to the solar plexus. He had been looking forward to seeing James again so much, finally holding him in his arms again, spending all day in bed, listening to James sing along to _A Cauldron Full of Hot, Strong Love_ in a mock-tenor while cooking them food wearing nothing but an apron that said _Whomp my willow_. Even if it had only been last year they started doing it, Teddy felt like he wouldn’t oppose if they were to make it a tradition.

“ _Oh, come and stir my cauldron,”_ James had sung, winking at Teddy, shaking his arse,  
_“And if you do it right,_  
_I'll boil you up some hot, strong love_  
_To keep you warm toniiiiight!”_

“Why are you even wearing an apron?” he’d asked, watching James’ arse jiggling in time with the music. “You don’t have anything on to ruin with spots of tomato sauce.”

James had given him a cheeky smile. “That’s true, but imagine if I got something hot spattered on me, I don’t want any sensitive parts burned.”

“If that happened I could kiss it better?” Teddy had suggested, to which James had stared at him for ten seconds before ripping the apron off.

“Maybe you could do it proactively?” he’d said, and Teddy had wasted no time in doing so, neither of them noticing the dinner burning on the stove.

Teddy shook his head in an attempt to clear it of all the memories of James, they only made the longing worse. He sighed, and suddenly, he felt an itch all over - a physical urge to hurry home.

The streets were less crowded now, which was lucky, because he didn’t dare to Apparate this close to Muggles, and it only took him 15 minutes to run to his flat. When he got there, the door was unlocked, which was odd, as he distinctly remembered closing and warding it when he left. He took his wand out, slowly turned the knob, and stepped inside, greeted by the sight of —

“Jamie.” The word left him on an exhale. “How…? Why…?”

James was standing in the hallway, his eyes red rimmed and shiny but his posture tall and proud. Teddy wanted to rush to him, kiss him, and tell him how much he loved him, but James radiated disappointment and anger, so Teddy just stood there, swallowing back the words.

“Edward Remus Lupin, you _fucking_ wanker,” James said, crossing his arms over his chest. “You are _not_ breaking up with me over the Floo.” He looked so imposing, the months away on his mission had obviously made him more grounded, more at ease with his abilities. For the first time, Teddy saw the similarities to Harry, that raw power that sometimes just radiated off him in waves. Then James’ words sank in.

“What? No! Why would I —?”

James took a step forward. “You told me, when I got this internship, _you told me_ that I should do it, that we would be fine. I hesitated because I didn’t want to risk our relationship, but you _insisted_. And now you suddenly _can’t keep doing this_? What the fuck Teddy?”

Teddy swallowed. “I _can’t_ keep doing this. I can’t keep being this far away from you, it drives me crazy not being able to kiss you and touch you.”

“Oh, so your solution is to break up?” James scoffed, but his voice was quivering.

“No! I —”

“Then what?!” James shouted, tears now running down his face.

“I —” Teddy began but was interrupted by a tap on the window. He went to open it, and was surprised to see the owl he had sent from the Post Office sitting outside, glaring at him with a look of utter indignation. It fluttered inside, landed on James’ shoulder and stuck out its leg. James untied the scroll with wide eyes and shaking fingers, and as soon as he had done so, the owl took off in what Teddy could only describe as a huff, snatching the offered treat from Teddy’s had outstretched hand.

“What’s…” James said, trailing off as he unrolled the parchment. “‘ _Baby, please come home’_?” He looked up at Teddy, tears still clinging to his lashes.

“I sent it when I couldn’t reach you after you closed the connection,” Teddy said, “Poor bugger must’ve flown in circles trying to find you.”

“I couldn’t bear the thought of being dumped over the Floo,” James said, swallowing. “It took some persuasion to get the Portkey Office to send me here, but when I finally managed to get here, you were gone.”

Teddy’s heart constricted at the thought of James ever thinking he didn’t want to be with him. “I was wandering the streets, moping, and feeling sorry for myself for fucking things up,” he said, stepping closer and tentatively reaching a hand out to touch James. “I didn’t mean for it to come out like that. I meant that we need to figure out a way to be together,” he said softly. “I thought I could look into ways to transfer to Mongolia for the duration of your internship, or even take a sabbatical. I know that your work would make it hard for us to see each other on a daily basis, but at least if I were closer, it would be easier than the International Floo calls and owls we have now.”

James stood quite still, blinking, his mouth hanging open.

“You’d do that for me? You’d quit your job to come and stay with me, in fucking _Mongolia_? Do you have any idea how remote and boring it is there?”

Teddy felt his shoulders dropping an inch, and he moved closer still, taking James’ hand in his. “You know I’ve been there, right?”

“Yeah but you didn’t see any of the surroundings since we stayed at my place and shagged the whole time we weren’t working,” James mumbled.

Teddy let out a relieved breath. It couldn’t be that bad if James was talking about them shagging constantly during Teddy’s trip. “I think there’s lots of ancient magic I could study there, but if not, it’s only a job, and I could use a break from it. Especially if that means I get to spend more time with you.”

James gave a shaky laugh, and Teddy finally dared to close the distance, cupping James’ cheek and tilting his head towards him, capturing his lips in a slow kiss. 

“I’m sorry, Jamie. You’re right, I _am_ a wanker for ever making you doubt how much I love you.”

James sniffled, wiping his tears with the back of his hand. “Well, you’d better make it up to me by showing me how much, so I never have reason to doubt that again.”

Teddy laughed, pressing James closer and delighting in the way he gasped softly against his ear. “I think I have an idea how to do that. How much time do I have before you have to go back?”

“Oh, I can stay for Christmas,” James said casually, but Teddy heard a sense of achievement in the words. “I managed to find a way to remove the complicated curses that had my superiors scratching their heads for weeks, so they gave me time off.”

“Really?” Teddy said, almost choking with relief and pride at James’ abilities.

James nodded, smiling. “Really. Now, you’d better make this a Not-so-Silent Night.”

Teddy snorted at James’ crudeness, but he knew that James used these kinds of lines to hide his insecurities.

“I promise,” he said, sliding a hand into James’ hair and drawing him closer still. “I’m going to commit blasphemy by worshipping every inch of your body,” he added, delighting in the way James gasped as he lifted him up and carried him into his bedroom, where he intended to fulfil his promise.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Comments and kudos are lovely <3
> 
> I'm also [on tumblr](https://andithiel.tumblr.com//)! Come say hi!


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